Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows solved the riddle of how to top the box-office this weekend, taking in $40 million in its opening weekend. What may be next for the great detective to solve is why the film fell short of the projected $50 million many expected it to take in.
Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked scampered to an easy second place with $23.5 million, though analysts expected about $30 million from the animated animals.
In limited IMAX released, Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol took in $13 million. That may not sound like a lot, but consider that the film opened on just 425 screens and you’ll see why some in Hollywood are hopeful the film will do well when it goes wider this week. Of course, part of the sales were for fans eager to catch the first six minutes of The Dark Knight Rises on the IMAX version. That preview won’t be in the standard theatrical release.
The comedy New Year’s Eve did $7.4 million in its second weekend, followed by Jonah Hill’s comedy The Sitter, also in its sophomore week, with $4.4 million.
